In my letter on the occasion of the Journal of Children and Poverty’s 25th volume, I wrote about the continuing need to further the research and policy agenda in service of children and families experiencing poverty and homelessness. It is thus only fitting that in this final issue of JCP, we spotlight the voices of scholars and practitioners poised to carry forward this work. The authors included in this volume crucially remind readers to center the concerns of the individuals and families using existing systems of care and to push institutional leaders to be more conscious of and responsive to the particular circumstances that create and shape the multitude of homelessness experiences.
In January 2020—just prior to the globe turning upside down—providers, policymakers, and scholars gathered at the Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness’s Beyond Housing conference. Keynote speakers, workshop leaders, and panelists in dozens of sessions focused on various elements of ICPH’s four core pillars: Housing and Shelter, Education, Health and Well-Being, and Community. The original articles and policy briefs in this issue tackle these four themes.
We look at the role of Education as children begin their learning journeys (“Strong Beginnings for Babies: Families’ Language Stimulation of Infants from Low-Income Backgrounds” by Mary Knight-McKenna, Heidi L. Hollingsworth, and Judy Esposito); take major strides in the face of systemic barriers (“Young, Black, Successful, and Homeless: Examining the Unique Challenges of Black Students Who Experienced Homelessness” by Earl J. Edwards); and aspire to higher education (“Saving for College: Perspectives from Participants in a Universal Children’s Savings Program” by Zibei Chen and William Elliott).
We examine physical (“The Interactive Role of SNAP Participation and Residential Neighborhood in Childhood Obesity” by Thomas P. Vartanian and Linda Houser) and behavioral (“Associations between Parent-Reported Family Economic Hardship and Mental Health Conditions in U.S. Children” by Evva Assing-Murray and Lydie Lebrun-Harris) Health and Well-Being as related to child poverty, both particularly pressing concerns as so much of the developed world struggles with the economic uncertainty wrought by the pandemic.
The 2020 Beyond Housing Conference theme invited attendees to consider family homelessness as a national experience and a local issue. To that end, we highlight outcomes of Community surveys of youth in Delaware and North Carolina (“Using Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data to Analyze Housing Instability among Delaware Public School Students” by Ann M. Aviles et al. and “Risk-Taking Behaviors of Homeless Youth: Moderation by Parental Monitoring and Social Support” by Caitlyn Owens, Evadine Codd, and Mary E. Haskett), as well as the results of a “journey mapping” project of families experiencing homelessness in North Texas (“Navigating the System for Families Experiencing Homelessness” by Erika Thompson et al.).
Finally, our policy brief section connects the theme of the conference with what we hope is JCP’s legacy. Jillian S. Merrick and Angela J. Narayan in “Assessment and Screening of Positive Childhood Experiences Along with Childhood Adversity in Research, Practice, and Policy” remind us that all families live through a range of experiences. Even as they struggle with ongoing challenges and the specific issues that led to their homelessness, families have many internal strengths that, if buoyed, will help children blossom into adulthood, and programs for children and their parents would be wise to consider and emphasize the role of positive childhood experiences alongside adverse ones. In “Changing the Paradigm of Family Homelessness” by Yvonne Vissing and Diane Nilan and “Reimagining Homelessness Assistance for Children and Families” by Barbara Duffield, the authors push us to go beyond Housing and Shelter as we partner with families to find solutions to their problems as they experience them—not as distant policymakers in Washington, D.C. may perceive them.
When interviewed in January, Conference participant Jaymes Sime, Executive Director of MICAH House in Iowa, noted that the gathering, “does a good job of establishing community; [the] type of people [who] are seeking this type of information all are people who are inquisitive and are trying to drive change from heart for the people [whom] they serve.” Sime emphasized that being curious “is probably the best thing that [practitioners] can be”—curious about what more they can do and curious about what the families they serve need.
As the Journal of Children and Poverty signs off, we hope that our readers and partners will continue to be curious and employ serious scholarly inquiry and applied analysis in order to grow the chain of action that I called for in our first issue. Inputs from thoughtful research can powerfully drive the kind of “change from heart” in homelessness and poverty policy and practice that will center families, children, and strengths-based solutions.